CONITEC launches the publication “Ad“standing the Merger of Technologies in Health – how to get involved”, available for download at the electronic address – conitec.gov.br (download here). This document was inspired by the “Understanding Health Technology Assessment (HTA)”, produced by Health Equality Europe (HEE).
Adapted to the Brazilian reality and elaborated in a simple and direct language, the publication seeks to enable a better understanding of the population about the process of incorporation of health technologies into the Unified Health System (SUS), also stimulating the participation of society in the process of (ATS) that precedes the incorporation, exclusion or alteration of drugs, products and procedures.
In Brazil, the participation of the community is one of the guidelines of the SUS present in the Federal Constitution of 1988. It is also one of the principles described in Laws 8,080 / 1990 and 8,142 / 1990, which provide for community participation in health. In 2011, Law 12,401, which created CONITEC, also made official the participation of civil society.
Involving the population in decision-making processes provides an opportunity to improve the understanding of health managers and practitioners about patients' needs and preferences. In this sense, the guide will be of great importance for the population to express their needs in an organized way and that can be used in HTA processes.